The present invention relates to a liquid dispenser for supplying a fluidic substance such as foams, liquid soaps, detergents, and disinfectants.
Liquid dispensers for dispensing fluidic substances (hereinafter referred to as “fluids”), such as foams, liquid soaps, detergents, and disinfectants, are widely used in houses and business facilities. FIG. 6 shows a conventional liquid dispenser including a body 1′, a base 2′, and a control unit 3′. The body 1′ is a container having a lid 11′ that can be removed for supplying the fluid to be dispensed. The base 2′ is fixed by fasteners, such as screws, to a bottom of the body 1′. The bottom of the body 1′ includes a through-hole 12′ in communication with an interior of the body 1′ such that the fluid in the body 1′ can flow through the through-hole 12′ into the base 2′. The base 2′ includes a guiding hole 21′ in communication with the through-hole 12′ of the body 1′. The guiding hole 21′ and the through-hole 12′ are in a sealed condition such that the fluid can fall into the guiding hole 21′. The lowest portion of the guiding hole 21′ is in communication with a connecting tube 22′. An outlet tube 23′ extends perpendicularly from a bottom side of the connecting tube 22′ and is in communication with an interior of the connecting tube 22′. A valve 24′, an elastic element 25′, and a piston 26′ are mounted in the connecting tube 22′. The piston 26′ is fixed to an inner side of a button 27′. An outer side of the button 27′ is located outside of the base 2′ for manual pressing. The valve 24′ can be actuated by the piston 26′ to cause opening or closing of a valve port 20′ in communication with the connecting tube 22′ and the guiding hole 21′. An end of the elastic element 25′ abuts a peripheral wall surrounding the valve port 20′. The other end of the elastic element 25′ abuts the piston 26′. The elastic element 25′ can return the piston 26′ after the button 27′ is pressed and then released. The piston 26′ is in sealing contact with an inner periphery of the connecting tube 22′. The control unit 3′ is received in the outlet tube 23′ in communication with the connecting tube 22′. The control unit 3′ is comprised of a plug 31′, an elastic element 32′, and a mouth 33′. The plug 31′ is in the form of a ball biased by an end of the elastic element 32′ such that a valve port 30′ of the outlet tube 23′ in communication with the connecting tube 22′ is normally closed. The valve port 30′ is opened when the plug 31′ is pressed and disengaged from the valve port 30′. The other end of the elastic element 32′ abuts against the mouth 33′ fixed in the outlet tube 23′. A seal 34′ is provided between the outlet tube 23′ and the mouth 33′ to prevent leakage of the fluid. In normal condition, the fluid flows to the through-hole 12′ and accumulates in the connecting tube 22′. The valve port 30′ between the connecting tube 22′ and the outlet tube 23′ is closed by the plug 31′ so that the fluid cannot flow downward. When the button 27′ is pressed, the valve 24′ is actuated by the piston 26′ to close the valve port 20′. The fluid in the connecting tube 22′ pushes the plug 31′ to move downward and, thus, opens the valve port 30′. The fluid can flow downward through a hole 35′ in the mouth 33′ and, thus, be dispensed. When the button 27′ is released, the returning force of the piston 26′ under the action of the elastic element 25′ moves the valve 24′ to disengage from the valve port 20′. Thus, the valve port 20′ is opened and allows the fluid to flow into the connecting tube 22′ for next dispensation.
However, the piston 26′ and the button 27′ are fixed together such that the force applied to the button 27′ must be aligned with the longitudinal axis of the piston 26′ to avoid the button 27′ from being damaged or getting stuck. Although the button 27′ is generally provided with an arcuate recess having a center located on the longitudinal axis of the piston 26′, not every user is aware of this and applies force along the longitudinal axis of the piston 26′ every time. Thus, a need exists for a novel liquid dispenser allowing simple, easy pressing operation to obtain the fluid.